Trade-A-Boat 496 2017

quickspecs

Mercury Verado 200

TYPESupercharged inline

six-cylinder four-stroke

RATED HP 200

DISPLACEMENT2.6L

WEIGHT288kg

GEAR RATIO1.85:1

PROPELLEREnertia

14.7x16in

performance technology,
it weighs 57kg over its little
sister. However, on the
Antares I thought this weight
actually benefitted the ride
by balancing the boat well
and transferring bulk to the
stern, planting the Beneteau
hull firmly in the water.
The Verado’s power comes
from the force-fed flow of
air into the engine through
computer-controlled multi-
point fuel injection, with the
main CPU adjusting boost
to deliver just the right fuel

mixture right throughout the

rev range.

Electronic throttle and

shift combine with a Flo-

Torq Soft Shift Rubber Hub

system for effortless, clunk-

free gear selection.

Acceleration from the

single Verado was fast and

smooth; we were out of the

hole at 15kt and 3200rpm.

We maintained this speed

without falling off the plane

or suffering undue vibration.

Planting the throttle from

any revs up to WOT gave

an instant spurt of speed.

Cruising at 27kt and

4500rpm consumed 52L/h of

92RON, for a range of 130nm

keeping a 10 per cent reserve

in the 280L tank. Even at full

noise and 34kt consumption

was a reasonable 79L/h,

giving a 108nm range.

Sparkling acceleration,

good cruising speeds and

smooth delivery – to my

mind the larger single Verado

200 was a good match for the

nearly 2500kg all-up weight

of the Antares 8 OB.

“Sparkling acceleration and

smooth delivery – a good match

for the Antares 8

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